Vacuuming question

[agrasyuk]

If you look closely at a natural lake, you have a constant source of incoming and outgoing water. The waste material is deposited by the fish and plants and dissolves in the water. The old, polluted water flows away and is renewed by the incoming water. It's the same with a tank. The fish and plants do their business in the water and we remove most of it through the large, weekly water change. The toxins in the water that's left is diluted to a very safe level in all the new, treated tap water. So, you maintain a balanced water chemistry. The problem most fish keepers have is they don't remove and replace most of the water every week. They slack off here and there and this translates into an imbalance in the water and failure in keeping the fish alive and healthy.


B

I'm not arguing for vacuuming (I don't vaccum susbstrate either) but you cannot simplify it like this. Unlike in our tank quite a few anaerobic processes happen in deeper silty bottoms of those lakes on top of slew of extra creatures that feed on deteius and other wastes. In nature it's not all about the natural"water changes". Healthy creatures live in stagnant lakes (and marshes) too.

 

[fishkeeper90]

when we use gravel vac (no longer have gravel now in fry tank) we found it to not suck any babies up the current in the tube before the hose wasnt strong enough to pick them up although was strong enough to pick the dirt up we did also have finger at the ready on the hose just incase one went up so we could stop the flow instantly to let it out (use just the hose now as got no gravel)

 

[Autumnsky]

In regards to the tank and shrimp.

I have tried the net method and used it for a short time too. What I find will work as well as anything is getting your arm/hand into the tank with the vac and shooing away the shrimp from the vac. Like thumb at the end of the tube and the fingers doing the shooing out from the end.

At this stage in my shrimp keeping (and fish), I rarely vac anymore. Using special substrates, like Up Aqua, Amazonia Light and just types of sand, Garnet and Black Petco sand from a long time ago one doesn't need to vac as often.

That said, t depends on the kinds of food you are feeding. Personally I use a wide variety of Hikari quite often, have been for years.

What I have noticed recently, it has a bunch of filler in it, like many other prepared foods. While using this in a bare bottom tank, it was glaringly apparent how much stuff which wasn't eaten and how much I must be over feeding!

I use a white bucket to catch vac'ed water and then watch for movement if any little guys got through. Gentle swirl and watch for darting babies or shrimp and scoop with a net.

I have been feeding more frozen foods lately and the fish and shrimp have been looking better than ever.

Be aware that the more pure foods can break down to ammonia more quickly and adversely affect the stock!!! So go lightly.